Life as it Was
by Catherine or Cate
Summary: The first trilogy in my 'Life' stories following a relationship between a Hermione/Charlie romantic relationship. It belongs in my universe where people don't die, but the war is over etc and so forth. Followed by 'Life as it Comes'.
1. Life as it Was 1

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Life as it Was

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Chapter One

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Charlie Weasley, slumped down in the kitchen chair at the safe house, disbelief etched on his face. The letter in front of him declared it in black and white. The war was over and everyone was ok. Getting up, he stiffly walked over to the window, a cane aiding him on his short journey, so he could look out over the snow-dusted landscape.

The red haired man, ran his hands over his face roughly as he smiled, remembering long past Christmases with his family; Ginny's first white Christmas, the one when Ron declared that his mother had spent the night putting icing sugar over the back garden and then the little boy trying to eat the cold snow. He remembered his life before he'd come home to fight for what he believed in; a free world, but now he could return to his beloved dragons.

The floo flared green and a cloaked woman stepped out before pulling down her hood.

"Charlie!" she called, heading for the bedroom.

"I'm right here," he said softly.

Soft brown eyes met his bright blue and a beautiful smile crossed her face.

"Molly asked me to come and get you. They're with Ron and Harry at St Mungos."

"Why aren't you in a hospital bed too, Hermione?" Charlie asked moving slowly, painfully forward.

"Because I am here trying to get you into one," she replied, in a no nonsense manner.

Charlie grinned and waved his wand, packing all the perishable items he'd been brought. Waving it a second time, he packed the clothes into a trunk and a third wave had the trunk shrunk in his pocket.

"I'm ready to leave if you are," Charlie declared.

"You aren't a very patient person are you?" Hermione laughed, wrapping her arms tightly around his body.

"This is going to her a lot," Charlie said grimacing. "Isn't it?"

Hermione looked up and Charlie noticed the small cuts on her face, and the dark circles under her eyes.

"Yes," she replied nodding. "It's going to hurt."

"Let's do it then," Charlie said tensing his body and waiting for the sensation of apparating.

He waited for what seemed like a minute before he opened his eyes to see what was taking so long. He looked into her brown eyes and then felt her soft lips touch his. Distracted he let his body relax. Hermione pulled away and smiled.

Then she apparated.

III

Nine days later, after the fall of Voldemort, it was Christmas Eve and everyone was back at The Burrow, which had somehow survived the war, to celebrate.

Charlie, with his newly mended leg, sat as far away from Hermione as possible, repeating to himself, over and over in his mind that the young woman had been dating his youngest brother. He watched as she helped his mother cook their meal in the kitchen, easily balancing dishes and remembering to stir pots at the critical moment.

They'd hardly spoken since she'd taken him to St Mungos for treatment that night, though they had joked about the kiss they'd shared. Charlie tried very hard not to smile as he replay the moment where she'd threatened to kiss him again in front of a medi-witch to get him to relax so they could treat the massive muscle and tendon damage to his right thigh. She'd made him laugh, and that had had enough of an effect to let the treatment begin.

Wordlessly, they set the table together, as he sat with his leg elevated. Using magic they finished quickly and she slipped him a pain-relieving potion.

Nodding his thanks, Charlie shifted position as the rest of the family came to the table.

The meal was served, eaten, conversation remained upbeat and lively as the wireless played Christmas carols in the background. Soon, everyone was retreating to the lounge room to digest and mellow as the snow fell outside.

"Charlie, are you coming?" his mother asked drawing all attention to where Charlie remained at the table waiting for everyone to leave before he moved.

"Fine, Mum. My leg is just a bit stiff."

Charlie watched as Hermione said something to Harry and the raven-haired man passed the message on to the twins who continued on into the lounge room.

"Are you sure you're ok?" Molly asked, fussing as usual.

"Fine, Mum. I promise. Just give me a moment to move. I've been in the one position too long and my muscles have seized."

Molly watched as Hermione moved forward, another painkiller in her hand, but hidden from the Weasley Matriarch's view by her body.

"I've got it Molly. You go and enjoy yourself."

Molly moved into the lounge room and Hermione allowed Charlie to swallow the medicine.

"You are my angel, you know," Charlie hissed through clenched teeth as the duo tried to move his leg with the least amount of disturbance possible.

"Charlie..." Hermione began before stopping.

"What? Tell me," the red head urged flexing his ankle and curling his toes.

Hermione drew in a deep breath and looked up. "I'm joining the unspeakables."

Charlie snapped his head up and looked at the younger woman. "Why are you telling me? Does Ron know?"

Hermione's mouth thinned and Charlie understood.

"You're doing this to distance yourself from Ron."

"I love him, but more as a brother or a friend than a lover. And I'm worried that he won't understand why..." Hermione explained.

"We should probably talk about this later," Charlie suggested. "Not with the entire family in the next room speculating."

Hermione moved across the room and grabbed the now familiar cane, handing it to Charlie. The slightly taller man wrapped an arm around her shoulders and allowed himself to be led into the lounge room. Just inside the doorway, he pulled back suddenly, sensing a prank, but the movement caused him to over balance and land awkwardly on his injured leg.

"Charlie!" Hermione explained bending down to the man who was wincing in pain on the floor. "What happened?"

"Prank!" Charlie hissed. "We walked straight into it."

A furious expression crossed Hermione's face for a minute before she tried to turn around to face the twins. Upon discovering she was unable to look around, she looked up and spotted the mistletoe hanging from the ceiling.

"You idiots!" Hermione hissed as Charlie's face continued to lose colour as the pain from the pressure of Hermione's weight on his lower leg grew.

Moving forward quickly, Hermione pushed her lips up against Charlie's and held them there until the spell lifted.

"Let's get you up," she urged to the injured man, ignoring the blood on her hand from where the wound had been torn open. "I'll take you to St Mungos for a fun night."

Charlie didn't know how to react to the shocked faces of his family. Seeing the concern in Hermione's eyes he nodded and allowed her to use magic to lift him.

"How did Charlie get that wound?" Ron asked suddenly, as Hermione gathered coats and scarves and both were almost ready to move to the fireplace.

"No, Ron!" Harry warned in a low tone.

"How?" the youngest Weasley son demanded.

"Friendly fire in the Hogsmede Battle," Hermione said whipping around. "I did that to him, with the severing spell I created."

Ron paled dramatically and Harry shook his head in sorrow at his friend's insensitivity.

"I'm going to take your brother back to hospital now, for the third time to get it stitched up, Ronald," she said icily.

Charlie, grabbed Hermione and pulled her in close to his chest before apparating them both away to St Mungos.

"Well, the kneazle is out of the bag now," Charlie said with a weak smile as they moved up to the now familiar spell damage ward.

"And I just gave up the perfect opportunity to tell the whole family about the job in the Department of Mysteries without getting any awkward questions," Hermione fumed to herself.

"I don't think they'll forget this easily," Charlie said, wincing in pain as he sat on the edge of an empty bed.

III

Charlie walk, almost freely down Diagon Alley the following Christmas, one year after Voldemort had been defeated and he felt almost numb in the Christmas Hubbub.

His family was fighting, again, as they had a lot since the end of the war, but this time, the topic was a little closer to home. They wanted to go and find Hermione because apparently, no-one had heard from her since January, when she'd started her job with the Unspeakables to almost the entire Weasley Family's horror.

Charlie himself hadn't minded. He'd been brought in to have his leg checked by professionals, who were trying to find new forms of medical treatment, and as such he'd seen Hermione on a monthly basis.

The Dragon Handler also suspected, Harry had seen his friend, judging from the way Harry had prevented Ginny from working herself into an apoplectic frenzy during the family 'discussion' the previous weekend. Charlie suspected, from the sketchy way that Harry had always described the final confrontation that he'd used one of the many spells, Hermione had constructed to defeat his nemesis. And so, Charlie assumed that Harry had been in contact despite the confident comments he'd made seemingly supporting his friend from a distance.

Ron, however was the biggest confusion. Once Hermione had left, the youngest brother had seemed relieved and began dating girls left, right and centre. Yet, he was still the loudest voice arguing to bring Hermione home.

Charlie slipped out of the alley and through the Leaky Cauldron before heading across London to the little Indian Restaurant in SoHo.

Walking in the door, Charlie looked around and immediately spotted the brown locks in their tight braid. Wandering over to the table he paused to press a kiss to the top of her head before sitting down.

"Hey," Hermione greeted, obviously lighting up as he sat down. "How's the leg?"

"Much better, thank you. I can actually run away when dragons shoot flames at me now," Charlie said with a grin.

"Good," the brunette smiled. "What gossip do you have from The Burrow?"

"Well, if you don't come home during Christmas and New Year, Ron is going to tear the Department of Mysteries apart with more than a little help from Mum," Charlie said, accepting a glass of lemonade. "You've ordered?"

Hermione nodded. "Ronald wants me to go home. But I thought..."

"So did I," Charlie said shrugging. "Go figure. You probably have a better chance at understanding Ron's convoluted thought patterns and understanding why he does something. It's not like I was around when he was growing up."

Hermione looked thoughtful for a moment. "Ok. What else?"

"George suspects, that I suspect that he has a new girlfriend and I also suspect that Fred has no idea," Charlie announced. "Suspicion is mounting on all fronts but I suspect that it is true, and wait for it... Mum has no idea!"

"Now, this is gossip," Hermione giggled leaning forward. "Now, who do you suspect to be this girlfriend George suspects you know he has to be?"

Charlie looked at Hermione's sparkling cinniamon eyes and laughed.

"I suspect you know something," he accused, pointing a finger.

"Suspect away," Hermione replied.

III

Christmas Day arrived in the Weasley household and Charlie dressed and moved downstairs, close to lunch time to discover the familiar face of a certain brunette sitting in his favourite lounge chair with his youngest brother hovering behind protectively.

"Charlie!" Hermione cried jumping up and hugging him. "How's the leg?"

"Better than last time I saw you," Charlie replied ignoring the angry look from Ron. "What's it like being an unspeakable?"

Hermione smiled and let her eyes travel around the room for a moment.

"Classified," she joked, and Charlie laughed.

"How long will you be home for?" he asked directing her back to her place in his chair, while he took George's seat on the lounge.

"A few days. My squad and I are then going undercover for an extended period of time and I won't be seeing you all for awhile," Hermione explained, and Ron looked furious.

Charlie raised an eyebrow and flicked his eyes to the doorway Ron had just passed through leaving them alone in the lounge room together.

"As if I'd tell him first," Hermione whispered before changing the topic of conversation entirely much to Charlie's pleasure. He could talk about working with his beloved dragons all day long and Hermione was one of the few who was actually interested in what he had to say.

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	2. Life as it Was 2

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Life as it Was

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Chapter Two

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Hermione Granger checked her reflection in the mirrored lenses of her sunglasses. Her brown hair had been tamed into sleek curls for this job and she couldn't have been more pleased. Then again, here she was laying on a deck chair, beneath an umbrella, by the ocean in yet another pale coloured bikini, something that made her want to throttle her commander like nothing else.

Pushing her overly large sunglasses back up her nose, she looked for her Department of Mysteries task force buddies. One was sitting in a café overlooking the beach seemingly very French, despite the fact the man had a Scottish brogue whenever he opened his mouth. And there were two more, pretending to be a newly married couple honeymooning in the French Riviera in her line of sight just beyond the cornered off area reserved for hotel guests only. And then, there was her commander, winding his way across the sand in his hotel uniform, his silver tray perfectly level and her mocktail still full to the brim.

'Voila, Mademoiselle.'

'Merci, Henri,' Hermione smiled, accepting the glass and the cold drink, before the man wound his way back to the bar.

Hermione watched, and listened, to those close by here as she pretended to read her book, and really sipped her drink. She watched as a group of young men ran, playing some sort of game, up and down the length of beach in front of her, laughing and yelling as they jumped over and dodged around the other beach goers. Deciding that her time was up, Hermione downed her drink and folded the corner of her page, slipping the book into an overly large handbag that was beside her chair. Standing, she pulled the striped wrap around dress from the back of the chair and slipped it over her arms. Taking the ties, she tied the dress about her waist and in a bow at the back, before pulling a pale blue silk scarf from her bag and tying it about her hair to hold it back. Picking up her woven bag, she walked across the hot sand to the stairs that led up to the street. Washing her feet, Hermione then pulled on a pair of sandals before starting for the shopping district.

For the next few hours until late afternoon, she browsed the stores, making less than a handful of purchases and nibbling on fresh food she had bought from vendors. Remove the silk from around her hair she shook the loose curls free and threw her sunglasses into her handbag. She waved at the odd local and the odd hotel guest whom she knew as she passed by heading back for the evening. The group of young men who had been playing on the beach earlier in the afternoon ran around her, one being knocked by a comrade to bump into her.

'I'm sorry,' the red head said genuinely as his friends laughed. 'I mean…'

'It's ok. I know it wasn't you fault,' Hermione reassured bending to gather up her packages, only to discover the man had already picked them up.

'Here.'

'Thank you,' Hermione said looking into all too familiar eyes.

'Pleasure. Are you going to the soiree tonight?' he asked pointing at the hotel.

'Yes. I'm going in to change.'

'Then I ask that you save me a dance, if I am not lucky enough to have you on my table.' His bright blue eyes all but broke through her self-protective barriers.

'We shall have to see how your luck goes,' Hermione replied taking back her packages and moving off.'

'I'll take that as a yes then,' he called. Hermione just waved in reply.

III

'I think I may have had my cover blown,' Hermione hissed down her secure telephone. 'I'll order something on room service, be sure you're the one to bring it up.'

The brunette stood in front of her bathroom mirror, the telephone handset to one ear as she used magic to apply her make up for the evening.

'Oui, je voudrais un petit quelque chose manger, sil vous plait. Et d'eau, aussi.'

Hermione listened to the reply before slamming the telephone back onto the cradle. She continued using magic to coax her hair into an elegant style. When she heard the knock on her door, she practically ran open it. The man who had served her cocktail on the beach entered and before the door closed, sound proofing charms were up.

'What's wrong?'

'I ran into someone who I know, who knows me. And he'll be there tonight.' Hermione whispered wringing her hands.

'How well?'

'Pardon?' the young woman asked distractedly.

'How well do you know him, Hermione?'

'His little brother is my best friend, Henry. His little brother is in love with me.'

'One of Ron's brothers is here?' the elder unspeakable asked.

'Yes.'

'Which one?'

'Charlie,' Hermione replied.

'Will his appearance stop you doing your job you're here to do?' Henry asked.

'No,' Hermione said, as firmly as she could.

'Then what is the matter?'

'I don't want to have to oblivate him if it all goes badly,' Hermione replied.

'Look at me,' Henry said calmly, forcing the younger unspeakable to look at him. 'Jane will go down to the party. Henri's shift will end and he will have drinks down on the beach with the other staff. If Charlie picks up on Jane, not really being Jane, bring him back here and do what it takes.'

Hermione frown before looking up at her commander. 'What about putting a Fidelius on my identity?'

'Make it a Fidelius on your true identity while you are Jane and let us know,' Henry nodded. 'Now you don't have to obliviate your boyfriend. Are you happy?'

'He's not my boyfriend.'

'Take the night off, Hermione. Do the rounds at the party and retire early with a headache,' Henry suggested. 'Better yet, bring him home and have some fun.'

Hermione frowned at her commander and picked up her wand. Settling herself on the edge of the bathtub with the door closed she performed the charm to hide her identity. Slipping out of the bathroom, Henry looked at her confusedly, while Hermione wrote down the passwords. Handing the slip of paper to him, he read it and nodded.

'I guess it worked.'

'So it would seem,' Hermione replied writing out three other slips of paper while Henry burnt his. 'Will you give these to the people who need to see them?'

'On my way back to the kitchens,' Henry nodded. 'Enjoy the party.'

'Goodnight,' Hermione smiled closing and locking her door.

Heading to her suitcase, she pulled out a pepper-up potion, downed it before she discarded her bathrobe and pulled on her stockings, dress, and shoes. Checking her appearance in the mirror, she gathered the things she needed for the evening and left for the hotel ballroom.

III

Charlie stood in one of the many doorways leading to the patio adjoining the grand ballroom of the hotel. He looked at every woman who moved past looking for the one he'd been pushed into that afternoon. Something about her was entrancing – and so familiar.

'A tuxedo? Well, I must admit you scrub up rather well,' the voice came from his side.

He looked to see the brunette, with her big brown eyes, dressed in an elegant navy gown, that shimmered in the soft lighting. 'You look beautiful. I'm Charlie,' he said holding out his hand.

'Jane,' she replied holding out hers, which Charlie gently accepted and held to his lips.

'The pleasure is all mine, I assure you.'

She smiled, a beautiful smile, and began to move away. 'Meet me here when the dancing starts if you want your dance.'

Charlie inclined his head in affirmation as she swept away before heading out to the patio to catch up with his dragon handler buddies.

Champagne and wine flowed, hors d'oeuvres were passed around, and there was eating, drinking and merriment. Charlie and the boys laughed at jokes, admired the elegant women and tried their luck with the single ladies. However, it was silence for his friends that made Charlie turn around and look at whomever his friends were staring at behind him.

'The dancing started three songs ago,' she accused.

'My apologies, I was having a joke with my friends here.'

'I can see that.'

'Shall we dance?' Charlie asked offering his elbow to have it accepted by the slight woman in blue. His friends gave him the thumbs us as he passed back into the ballroom the beautiful woman on his arm.

As they reached the edge of the floor, she slipped, so naturally, into his arms and they spun around the floor, for the first song, then another, and another, and another. Charlie had lost count when she finally indicated that she wanted to stop.

'My feet hurt,' she smiled ruefully.

'Shall I escort you home for the evening?' Charlie asked, not wanting to leave this mysterious young woman.

'I'd like that very much.'

Together they left the ballroom and entered a lift that took them to the fifteenth floor. They walked to her door and her key was in the lock, when she spoke again.

'A nightcap?'

Charlie's body tingled at the sound of her breathless question. 'Please,' he replied before he could truly think through the ramifications. The door opened, closed and was locked before her lips finally touched his. They were as soft as they seemed as he watched them while they danced, but there was something strong about the way they teased him.

He let her ease off his jacket and undo the buttons on his shirt before he turned away to hide the wand strapped to hid forearm.

'Don't be shy,' she chuckled, lifting her dress to reveal a wand in a thigh holster on her leg.

'How did you know?' Charlie asked.

'I felt the outline of the holster while we danced, and took a guess. I only wish my wand was more accessible in case of an emergency.'

'Did you go to Hogwarts?' Charlie enquired.

'Yes.'

'At the same time I did?'

'No. I was in the same class as your youngest brother.'

'Ron's grade!' Charlie exclaimed. 'Maybe I should…'

'I invited you in didn't I?'

'I don't know of any Jane's in Ron's class,' Charlie said warily.

The young woman frowned and bent over the table to scribble something down. Charlie accepted the piece of paper as she handed it to him.

_The Golden Trio's Bookworm._

He didn't need to look up to know he was in the same room as Hermione Granger. She took the note and burnt it in the bathroom before flushing the remains down the toilet.

'Fidelius?' Charlie asked.

'Yes,' she replied flopping down on the loveseat.

Charlie sat down beside her. 'You are making all my dreams come true you know,' he admitted. 'There was always something about you. But you are Ron's.'

Hermione snorted her dissatisfaction. 'I belong to no one, except myself.'

'And maybe me, for just tonight?' Charlie asked, looking at his hands.

Silence reigned for the longest moment of Charlie's life. 'Maybe tomorrow morning too.'

The red head looked up and saw that his desire was reflected in her eyes. Not letting himself thing for the second time in a matter of minutes, Charlie crushed those lips to his and held her slender frame as if his life depended on it.

III

As they lay together, exhausted in the predawn quiet, his strong arms holding her close Charlie and Hermione both felt contentment as they held their thoughts at bay. Charlie smiled, as he felt her breathing become rhythmic.

'This feels good,' he whispered assuming Hermione was asleep. 'This feels right, like nothing has ever before.'

Then he let sleep claim him, as the sun rose, and the ocean sparkled in its light.

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	3. Life as it Was 3

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Life as it Was

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Chapter Three

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Charlie made his way back through the various buildings that comprised the small village on the edge of the dragon reserve heading for his tiny cottage on the far side. Opening the front door, of the stone house, Charlie closed and locked it behind him. Feeling his way in the dark, he found the matched and struck one to light the candles in his kitchen. As his eyes readjusted to the light, Charlie saw that the entire kitchen was clean, as was the lounge room next door.

Smiling in anticipation, Charlie walked up the narrow corridor and pushed open the bathroom door to see that the room shone, before continuing to the bedroom. There, on the bed, in the middle of the tidied room was his angel, fast asleep.

Charlie chuckled to himself before he crawled onto the bed and lay down beside an exhausted looking Hermione. Gently, he rolled her so her head rested comfortably on his chest, and his arms were wrapped around her light frame. She was obviously hadn't slept much, from the circles under her eyes, and she'd lost a lot of weight in the fortnight since she'd last appeared in his home. Gently, he stroked her messy hair and lay there enjoying the warmth of her body against his.

'You're late,' she whispered sleepily after they had been laying there for close to an hour.

'Not my fault, Lulu decided to lay eggs today,' Charlie replied with a grin referring to his favourite dragon on the reserve. 'How long will you be here this time?'

'Two weeks. Then I'll be going deep undercover and I won't be able to stop by at all for a while.'

'We'll make the most of it while it lasts,' Charlie assured. 'Would you like dinner?'

'I'd love some,' Hermione smiled, before pressing her lips gently against her lovers in a savoured kiss.

'I meant the actually edible kind,' Charlie whispered looking into her eyes.

'So did I.'

Hermione and Charlie moved out into the kitchen and began pulling items from the fridge. Eggs, milk, shallots, bacon, cheese and apple juice.

'Omelettes,' Charlie announced, pouring drinks. 'I'll go shopping tomorrow morning before work if you make a list.'

'Let's just eat now, so we can eat again later,' Hermione smirked, cheekily pinching his rear. 'We'll worry about lists tomorrow,' she said beginning to break the eggs into a jug as Charlie chopped the other ingredients beside her.

III

A handful of afternoons later, Charlie told the other handlers he was sick and skipped going to the pub as usual. Instead, he went home to find the girl of his dreams sitting on his bed reading a thick file. He stood in the doorway just watching her read loosening the buttons on his shirt and the belt around his hips.

'You can come in,' Hermione muttered not looking up.

'I was enjoying the view,' Charlie replied, sitting on the edge of the bed to take of his shoes. He did so without trouble and soon felt thin arms snake around his neck.

'I have to go soon.'

'I know,' Charlie replied bitterly. Every time she'd come in the past year made him find something new about her to love. Every time she left, it broke his heart just a little more.

'I don't want to go.'

'You have to, Mi. Be reasonable.'

'It gets harder to leave you every time I see you,' Hermione whispered clinging to Charlie. The dragon handler only realised his lover was crying when he felt a large tear plop onto his shoulder. 'I can't ask you to give this all up. You name dragons for goodness sake. And Lulu would terrorise everyone.'

Charlie turned enough in her grip to cover her lips with his own. 'Shhh. What brought this all on, Mi?'

'I don't know. I just…' Hermione dabbed at her eyes. 'It's nothing really.'

'Well, where is this nothing? I'm going have to tear into him for making you cry,' Charlie asked looking around the empty room.

Hermione laughed sadly. 'I've fallen for you. And I don't want to leave.'

'You could marry me.'

The brunette looked up, her eyes wide, but filled with hope. 'Marry?'

'Vows, rings and all the rest if you want,' Charlie shrugged. 'I think I've been in love with you since that embarrassing mistletoe incident. And you just hinted at it so why shouldn't we? I mean…' Charlie shook his head. 'I love you, Mi. Will you be my wife?'

'Yes,' Hermione breathed. 'Yes. I love you, Charlie.'

III

Charlie sat on his lounge flipping through an old _Magical Beasts_ magazine, not really paying attention to the articles. Looking up at the clock, he noticed only ten minutes had passed since he'd last looked. Walking out into the kitchen, he checked for mail again. Still nothing from his Hermione.

Fear settled in his heart and worry made its home in the pit of his stomach. It had been weeks since he'd received a message and that was way out of character. Hermione had been deep under cover before and still managed to let him know she was ok.

Charlie raked his fingers through his hair. What if she wasn't ok? Standing, he moved into the bathroom, stripping off his clothes as he went. He didn't even bother to cover his burns, and they stung painful once he stepped under the spray. The red head wasted time, he washed his hair, twice, he shaved, he used the long handled brush she'd left to scrub his back red. He'd hopped out of the shower and towel dried his hair. He'd dressed in clean clothes. He put a load of washing on. He'd checked the mail – still nothing.

Then his floo flared. Only two other people knew the address. The floo flared again and his heart stopped even though his feet moved him into the lounge room. The man who'd married them all those months ago stood by his lounge, a hooded person behind him.

Charlie grabbed the doorframe as the hood was removed. 'Hermione,' he whispered.

She ran to him and slammed into his chest, holding on tightly. Charlie held on, breathing in the scent of her hair, her perfume, before he realised that she was standing awkwardly. He pushed her back and looked down, before reaching out with both hands.

'You had a productive visit last time she was here, Charlie,' the man grinned.

'Thank you, Rob. For looking after her,' Charlie whispered to his wife's partner as his hands touched Hermione's rounded stomach and the red head sunk to his knees. 'Thank you for looking after them.'

'It was a pleasure,' the unspeakable grinned, stepping towards the fire. 'I'll be back in three weeks to pick her up.'

'Thank you for bringing me home, Robbie,' Hermione smiled.

'Have fun,' Rob replied, pulling up his hood and stepping into the green flames before he vanished.

'Hermione,' Charlie whispered.

'I'm sorry I didn't tell you.'

'Wow.'

'Charlie,' Hermione whispered, close to tears.

'It's ok. You're both ok. I couldn't ask for anything more,' Charlie said standing. Lifting Hermione into he arms he carried her into the bathroom.

'What are you doing?'

'Running you a bath. You always want a bath when you come home.'

'I don't want a bath this time,' Hermione cried, tears falling. 'I want you to hold me and just whisper that everything is ok. Tell me that the world hasn't gone mad, Charlie.'

Charlie undressed his wife as she stood in front of him crying. He then undressed himself and climbed into the bath. 'Come on,' he encouraged and slowly the witch climbed into the tub and lay back, her head on his shoulder, his hands entwined with hers over their baby. 'You know, Mi. The signs that the world is going mad are all there. They just stare us in the face every morning, when I drag myself out of bed, but you know, madness can be great.'

Hermione turned off the taps and used her wand to light the candles and turn off the light. 'How?'

'Well our lives are going to go a bit mad when our baby is born. We're not going to know what hit us. But I take comfort knowing that you will be there with me as we deal with it all. You will make it ok. It will be, ok.'

'Tell me more.'

'Well, if it's a girl we will name her Charlotte. Because she's not going to have the Weasley hair. She's going to be a stunner like her mama. That and I want my little girl to have the first letters of her name the same as mine.'

'Ok,' Hermione smiled. 'And if it's a boy?'

'If it's a boy we will name him... Tiberius.'

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